1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an improved shovel that when its bottom edge is located against the gutter and its side is held against the curb and then pushed at an angle to the gutter, the shovel pushes material located on the gutter off the edge of the gutter. The shovel may be rotated approximately 90 degrees and the same gutter may be scraped; or, without rotating the shovel, the user may cross to the gutter on the other side of the road under construction and proceed along the gutter and scrape it.
2. Description of the Prior Art
When roads are constructed, a curb and guttet is first formed. Then the gravel road bed is graded prior to laying the road surface. In order to minimize the amount of material required to form the road surface, the grader blade is automatically set by a sensing device that reacts in accordance with a sonic signal that emanates from its transmitter adjacent to the grader blade and reflects off the gutter to a receiver that relays a second signal to the mechanism that adjusts blade height. Unfortunately, the signal gives incorrect readings when the sonic signal hitgs gravel or other material on the gutter surface such as a beer can. To avoid such false readings, the contractor, who is constructing the road, will require men to use a flat bed shovel and push off the material that may be laying on the gutter before the grader operation described commences. Use of a conventional shovel requires repetitious bending of the user's back to pick up and discard the material as well as several passes to remove all such material on the gutter.
Below I discuss in some detail patents that I am aware of which have disclosed shovels.
U.S. Pat. No. 853,171 discloses a shovel to remove snow from a sidewalk. The blade has top and bottom edges that are fabricated so that the lower edge is curved forward. The handle is held in place by pointed shank or end that with a socket connects the handle to the blade. The handle is also secured in place two brackets.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,375,505 discloses a street cleaning shovel. The shovel is pushed with two handles that are connected to the blade. The handles are interconnected at the end adjacent to the user through a strap. The shovel can be angularly positioned through the use of the handles so as to more easily remove snow. U.S. Pat. No. 2,266,542 discloses a snow cleaner. The cleaner includes a blade made from metal. The upper edge of the shovel is bent slightly to prevent snow from moving up and over the top of the blade. The lower edge is curved. The portion of the blade between the two end flanges is vertical. The handle is connected to the blade through a metal shoe. The shoe in turn is connected to the blade by a rivet or bolt. The shoe end , adjacent to the blade, extends into and is guided by the slot provided between a stay bar and the blade. This arrangement allows the handle to rotate 35 degrees from a perpendicular position to it fastener that connects the handle to the shovel blade.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,734,291 discloses a shovel for cleaning sidewalks that allows the shovel to slide along a surface as it carries objects to be removed to a convenient place for dumping. The blade is formed into a curved shape. At each end of the shovel blade are a pair of rockers or skids. When the blade is full with snow, the user tilts back the shovel blade and slides the blade in this position to the place where the snow can be dumped by tilting the blade up.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,785,483 discloses a shovel constructed to move snow to the side. The blade is curved. The invention also has end walls at opposite sides or ends of the blade which assist in holding the snow from falling from the shovel as well as reinforcing the blade. The handle has a plurality of braces interconnecting the handle to the blade. The blade edge adjacent to the surface to be scraped may have a toothed edge which is detachable from the blade. It is used to remove ice and snow. Resilient runners are provided to support the blade either against the surface or slightly above it. U.S. Pat. No. 3,343,807 discloses a shovel which has a pair of handles that merge into a central handle that is held by the user. The shovel also has rollers that permit the user to more effortlessly push the blade along the surface. The rollers are interconnected with the shovel handle through appendages that allow the blade to be rotated up when the user end of the handle is lowered.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,538,847 discloses a shovel which has multiple socket for the handle so that it can be located at one of several predetermined angle.
These references do not teach the permanent angle that the handle of my invention makes with the blade which assists in the flow of the material off the blade. Nor do these patents teach the novel upper portion of my invention which used to prevent the material that is scraped from the surface from rolling over the top of the blade. Similarly it does not disclose the manner that I connect the blade and the handle. The prior art does not teach the angular side portion of my invention (which is explained in more detail below) that can be rotated so that the sides may be interchanged as they wear. This feature of interchanging the edges is also possible with the bottom portion of my shovel blade which can likewise be interchanged as it wears. And by including an angular side portion on both the front and back side of the shovel blade, after the entire shovel is rotated approximately 90 degrees, the shovel may be immediately reused to scrape the same gutter as the user of my invention returns to his original position or the gutter on the other side of the road, provided the shovel is not rotated. The angularly side portion also permits my invention to fit into the drain channel formed by the angularly sloping gutter and the vertical or nearly vertical sides of the curb. The juncture of these two slopes are interconnected by a concave curve or fillet that the side wall of my invention fits. This feature eliminates the material being removed from flowing between the side of the shovel and back onto the gutter. All the above references are square edged shovels, which when used as my invention is used, result in a gap being formed between the side of the shovel and the curb which in turn allows material scraped by the shovel to roll around the shovel blade and back onto the gutter. This results in several passes to be made over the gutter to clean it--always requiring the user to lift up the shovel and while holding the handle thrust the shovel to discard the collected material. In contrast the use of my invention requires only one pass over the gutter to remove material without having to raise and thrust the shovel. I also teach a handle that may be made from at least two parts. These and other advantages of my invention will be disclosed.